Smoothie King vs Ice Cream Churn Franchise Comparison

Below is an in-depth analysis and side-by-side comparison of Smoothie King vs Ice Cream Churn including start-up costs and fees, business experience requirements, training & support and financing options.

Start-Up Costs and Fees
 
Smoothie King Franchise
Ice Cream Churn Franchise
Investment $269,550 - $845,985$180,000 - $350,000
Franchise Fee $30,000$30,000
Royalty Fee 6%7%
Advertising Fee 3%1.5%
Year Founded 19871973
Year Franchised 19881979
Term Of Agreement 10 years10 years +5
Term Of Agreement 10 years10 years +5
Renewal Fee --


Business Experience Requirements
 
Smoothie King Franchise
Ice Cream Churn Franchise
Experience
  • General business experience
  • Marketing skills
    		• -

    Financing Options
     
    Smoothie King Franchise
    Ice Cream Churn Franchise
      In-House/3rd PartyIn-House/3rd Party
    Franchise Fees No/No-/-
    Start-up Costs No/Yes-/-
    Equipment No/Yes-/-
    Inventory No/Yes-/-
    Receivables No/No-/-
    Payroll No/No-/-

    Training & Support
     
    Smoothie King Franchise
    Ice Cream Churn Franchise
    Training --
    Support Newsletter, Meetings, Toll-free phone line, Grand opening, Internet, Security/safety procedures, Field operations/evaluations, Purchasing cooperativesField Training

    Initial Store Opening

    Inventory Control

    Franchisee Newsletter

    800 Telephone Hotline
    Marketing Co-op advertising, Ad slicks, National media-
    Operations 60% of all franchisees own more than one unit

    Number of employees needed to run franchised unit: 6 - 9

    Absentee ownership of franchise is allowed. (75% of current franchisees are owner/operators)

    		-

    Expansion Plans
     
    Smoothie King Franchise
    Ice Cream Churn Franchise
    US Expansion YesYes
    Canada Expansion No-
    International Expansion YesYes

    Company Overviews

    About Smoothie King

    When visits to various doctors did little to relieve the allergies Steve Kuhnau was suffering from, the nurse began reading up on nutrition, hoping a change in diet would help his symptoms. Once he began eating fresh foods and cutting fat out of his diet, Kuhnau started feeling better. His next task was to find a way to tackle the midday fatigue caused by hypoglycemia. Using his nursing expertise and the drink mixing experience he gained as a soda jerk in high school, Kuhnau began experimenting with high protein drinks. The resulting product combined fresh fruits, vitamins and other supplements and inspired the creation of Kuhnau's company, Smoothie King.
    Each Smoothie King store sells smoothies and a variety of vitamins, minerals, low fat snacks and nutritional supplements. Offering 40 percent off its initial franchise fee agreements for the first 40 agreements in 2013 IN St. Louis.

    The total investment necessary to begin operation of a traditional Smoothie King Business ranges from for an end-cap or in-line location, $269,550 to $545,035, and for a free-standing drive-thru location, $577,100 to $845,985. This includes $28,250 to $36,990 that must be paid to the franchisor.
    If you sign an Area Development Agreement, you also must pay the franchisor a development fee of $12,500 for each Smoothie King franchise you commit to develop after the first franchise. You must develop a minimum of 5 Smoothie King Businesses under the Area Development Agreement.
    Veteran Incentives  20% off franchise fee
    ""  "Entrepreneur

    #14 in Franchise 500 for 2020.
    #19 in Franchise 500 for 2021.







    About Ice Cream Churn

    Ice Cream Churn 's concept is to add an old-fashioned ice cream parlor within another existing location, such as delis, bakeries, video stores, convenience stores, truckstops. Ice Cream Churn sets up location, trains employees, installs exterior signs and supports location with on-going promotions and training. 32 flavors of ice cream and yogurt are available. Master franchise available. New mall kiosk also available!

     
    Ice Cream Churn was founded in 1973 in Byron, Georgia. Initially, a single store located inside a truck stop was added in hopes of providing additional traffic to increase overall sales. Five years later, with a successful, proven sales and marketing concept, the company began licensing add-on franchises to sell hand-dipped ice cream within other businesses under the trademark, "Ice Cream Churn®."